“FUUCCCKKK!!”

A voice shouted in the forest.

“Slow down Furor, we're barely keeping up as is!” Another voice wailed.

He ignored them and sped up. “Where the fuck is this place!?!”

The group initially walked, then began a brisk jog before running in no time. The first thirty minutes or so of their trek were fine but after the first hour, Furor became increasingly antsy. After the second hour, he broke out in a mad dash, trying to find something. They had been running for several hours now with nothing but trees, deer, rabbits and grass in sight.

“Boy, just look at the map, there's no need for this nonsense,” Ruby shouted a while trying to catch her breath.

“It's fucking useless. It just shows a clearing around the dungeon but I don't see any fucking clearings!”

At the back of the pack, a clearly drained Lily lay on the shoulder of Tina, as the latter focused her all on not losing the bastard that led them.

A bit further down, Nora wrapped her arms around Tina's hips and swayed in the air like a flag.

(“After we reach that dungeon I'm stomping both of your asses.”) Tina thought as she focused only on breathing.

A few hundred metres away.

(“I worried this would happen.”) Elizabeth thought as she followed the group. (“The map doesn't seem to be the most accurate. Ugh, the scouts he sent most have sloppily labelled the dungeon’s location after they left the area. I hate when they do stuff like this.”)

It came down to the fact a novice made the map than this but regardless, it seemed they would be running for a while.

However, it seemed the gods finally answered his prayer. With just five more steps he entered a clearing.

He quickly pulled out the map and shouted towards one of the men.

“Hey, dipshit, which way north!?”

The man quickly pulled out something out of his pocket. It was a compass.

He pointed upwards. Before he could respond with “It's that wa-”

Furor shouted, “Fucking finally.”

This was the south end of the clearing the dungeon was located in. It was just a few more minutes north.

Sounds of relief were heard and everyone,e except Furor, took a lie on the floor to rest.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“What the hell are you dipshits doing, knowing that overachiever she's probably arrived at the dungeon already. Get your asses up, we're heading there immediately.”

Elizabeth looked on and witnessed as they begrudgingly got up and entered a middling jog.

(“Well, I believe this is the correct decision. If we waste too much time they might suspect something from their guards being missing.”)

Yet she couldn't help but feel a bit bad having them continue running this long.

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The priest had thrown his armour off in an attempt to gain more speed when he ran towards the stairway. Its weight was minimal, but it was worth it if he gained a minute or two of time saved that way. The white-haired boy was tricky, but he was no powerhouse like the red-haired one. He took the most efficient path available from the previous stairway and reached the next stairway in fifteen minutes.

But when he reached the third-floor stairway, expecting the worst, it was almost disappointing how boring the area was.

He had noticed a few guards scantily walking around but most were here, as per his instructions.

He ran to one of the guards blocking the stairway. The guard nearly had his jaw drop to the floor when he saw who approached.

He looked down to see Father Daniel.

“Father!?” He shouted. The other guards turned from the stairway to look at the priest but he quickly gave them a glance that suggested “Do your jobs.”

They all turned back except the initial guard. “What can I help you with father?”

He clicked his tongue. From those words alone he could tell they hadn't seen the white-haired boy. “Have you been slacking off in your surveillance of the stairway?”

“Wha- no sir. We've been here for the last three hours.”

“Have you left this post at any point?”

“No sir, one guard is swapped within an hour to ensure there is no point in time this stairway is left empty.”

“I see, carry on.”

He turned around and began circling the dungeon floor. (“He hasn't reached this part of the dungeon yet? Was it really luck that got him this far?”)

Guards were highly concentrated in the halls towards the stairway so it wasn't unreasonable he hadn't passed through here yet. Maybe he was waiting somewhere for an opportunity? There was no way that boy had found the quickest route of the first floor yet be lost on the second.

The priest slowed down and soon came to a stop.

(“Ah, that should work nicely.”)

He turned around and headed for the stairway.

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At the bottom of the second stairway, Kevin retreated to a nearby room to rest himself. He touched part of his rib and it hurt every time he did so. But it probably wasn't broken. He hadn't broken a bone before, but he had seen people break their bones. He was positive he'd be in unbearable pain right now if that was the case.

He breathed deeply, enjoying his reprieve. There was no danger and he took his time walking around the structure.

“Well, I'm down here,” He sighed “And my eyes are still leading me somewhere.”

It seemed he had to go down yet another floor.

His stomach was starting to grumble and he quickly found some dried meat in one of the boxes, using his eyes.

He consumed it as he followed the path and came across a room that was recently inhabited.

“He's looking for me? I suppose this isn't too bad compared to falling down the stairs, but this stuff looks sorta cheap. It should protect me if he finds me, right?”